Hardiness with Dr Paul Taylor

Paul Taylor
  • 4.7 (37)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Semiweekly

Host Dr Paul Taylor, a Psychophysiologist, Neuroscientist, Exercise Scientist, and Nutritionist interviews experts from around the world on cutting edge research and practices related to improving hardiness in your mind, body and brain to become your best self.

  1. 23h ago

    12 Thinking Traps that are sabotaging you

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    16 min

  2. 2d ago

    Preparing for Life's Uncertainties With Carly Taylor

    You can't stop life surprising you, but you can train for it. This week: hardiness, hard winter training, and one small language shift you can use today. This week on Mojo Monday Carly is looking at something we all live with and rarely prepare for, which is the fact that life is uncertain. We're wired to crave certainty, and when life does the one thing it always does and surprises us, we can crumble, partly because so much of the advice we're given trains us for the good days and almost none of it trains us for the hard ones. Drawing on the Stoic philosopher Epictetus and his idea of hard winter training, along with the Challenge pillar of Paul work on psychological hardiness, Carly looks at what it means to expect life to be unpredictable without bracing for disaster, and to put our attention where it actually belongs, on how we respond rather than on what we can't control. She finishes with two simple practices you can start today, doing one hard thing on purpose each day, and swapping the word worry for the word concern. If you'd like to go deeper, Paul's book The Hardiness Effect explores all four pillars of hardiness in detail, and you can find it at paultaylor.biz. Carly is a counsellor and coach who specialises in building psychological hardiness — the ability to navigate challenge, stay engaged, and take meaningful action under pressure. Her work integrates modern psychology with Eastern and Stoic approaches, helping people build resilience, live with purpose, and respond to life’s challenges with greater clarity, courage and steadiness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    8 min
  3. The Surprising Connection Between Effort, Inconvenience, and Long-Term Happiness

    4d ago

    The Surprising Connection Between Effort, Inconvenience, and Long-Term Happiness

    Most of us chase fleeting moments of happiness only to realise they often come from quick dopamine hits rather than genuine well-being. But what if happiness isn't about constant joy or material success? What if it’s a nuanced, layered emotional umbrella that includes contentment, gratitude, curiosity, and purpose, all rooted in effort and connection? In this episode, famed happiness researcher Declan Edwards and I dismantle the myths surrounding happiness and reveal the science-backed truths that can truly elevate your life. You'll discover how Western society’s obsession with instant gratification distorts our understanding of happiness and how embracing effort, patience, and meaningful relationships can lead to a richer, more sustainable sense of well-being. From the ancient Greeks’ concepts of eudaimonia and hedonia, to modern neuroscience, this episode unpacks the science of human flourishing in practical terms.   Key Takeaways Happiness is an umbrella, not a goal the idea that happiness is a fleeting emotion to chase is misleading. Instead, viewing it as a broad spectrum of emotions including contentment, gratitude, and calmness shifts the focus to cultivating a sustained sense of well-being. Effort and inconvenience are the foundations of long-term happiness society’s obsession with shortcutting effort diminishes the depth of sustained well-being. True happiness depends on deliberate effort, patience, and embracing inconvenience, which build resilience and connection. The physiology of well-being is often overlooked practical health like physical activity, diet, and gut health is essential for happiness. Our physical state directly influences brain function and emotional resilience, yet many ignore this link. Happiness is contagious and embedded in community our psychological and emotional states influence others through ripple effects; strong social bonds and communal activities amplify collective well-being. The narratives we tell about life's challenges shape our experience The meaning we assign to adversity influences whether we see obstacles as opportunities for growth or as insurmountable setbacks. Internal emotional awareness amplifies happiness the ability to recognise, name, and work with emotions developed through tools like emotional literacy creates a foundation for healthier mental states and better interpersonal connections. The pursuit of happiness is collective and requires systemic effort we are responsible for fostering environments workplaces, societies, families that support collective well-being, not just individual pursuits.   Time Stamps 03:05 Understanding Happiness: Beyond Fleeting Emotions 06:08 Hedonic vs. Eudaimonic Happiness 09:02 Effort, Inconvenience, and Meaningful Connections 11:54 The Impact of social media on Happiness 15:08 Acceptance and the Stoic Philosophy 18:10 Finding Meaning in Challenges 21:04 Personal Anecdotes and Meaning-Making 24:32 Navigating Control in Uncertainty 25:50 The Role of Money in Happiness 29:11 Community and Collective Happiness 34:50 The Trade-offs of Material Gains 36:15 The Importance of Contributing to Society 40:26 Cultural Perspectives on Happiness 40:54 Expectations vs. Intentions: A Path to Happiness 43:29 The Role of Positivity Bias in Happiness 45:37 Increasing Your Surface Area for Luck and Happiness 48:40 Practical Steps to Enhance Emotional Awareness 52:09 The Power of Gratitude and Connection 56:31 The Interconnection of Physical and Mental Health   Resources Declan’s Book: How To Be Happy Website: https://declanedwards.com.au LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/declan-edwards-bu-happiness-college/                                Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/declanedwards_bu/                                                        TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@that.happiness.guy   Support the Podcast If you found this conversation valuable, consider subscribing and leaving a review on your preferred podcast platform. Your feedback helps us continue to bring you insightful discussions on important health topics.       See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    1h 2m

  4. Jul 1

    Effective ways to prevent and treat depression: Wisdom Wednesdays

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    10 min

  5. Jun 28

    The Sweet Spot Of Your Strengths With Carly Taylor

    This week Carly explores a more useful way to look at yourself, one that drops the language of strengths and weaknesses altogether. Drawing on the VIA Character Strengths and Ryan Niemiec's work on the golden mean, she looks at how every strength can be overused, underused, or used just right, and why the goal is never simply more of a good thing but the right amount in the right moment.  If you'd like to discover your own twenty-four, the free VIA Character Strengths survey takes about ten minutes at viacharacter.org. Carly is a counsellor and coach who specialises in building psychological hardiness — the ability to navigate challenge, stay engaged, and take meaningful action under pressure. Her work integrates modern psychology with Eastern and Stoic approaches, helping people build resilience, live with purpose, and respond to life’s challenges with greater clarity, courage and steadiness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    8 min
  6. The Hidden Impact of Stress and Environmental Toxins on Your Hormones and Aging

    Jun 26

    The Hidden Impact of Stress and Environmental Toxins on Your Hormones and Aging

    In this episode, Dr. Mike Fortunato shares how hormonal dysfunction fuels everything from low energy and poor mood to physical decline and disease, revealing the hidden forces behind the modern health crisis. You’ll discover how chronic stress, toxic chemicals, and ultra-processed foods are silently hijacking your hormones, driving declines in testosterone, estrogen, thyroid function, and more. Mike breaks down the complex web of endocrine disruption and epigenetic inheritance, exposing how societal factors and environmental toxins are passing on damage to future generations. Get crucial insights into why conventional medicine often "misses the signs" and how a holistic, functional approach can restore vitality at any age. We break down specific strategies for men and women to rebalance hormones naturally covering bioidentical hormones, the importance of optimal vitamin D, the role of precursors like DHEA, and the power of peptides.  Key Takeaways “Normal” labs can still mean dysfunction: Lab ranges often reflect an average population that is already unhealthy, so “normal” doesn’t always mean optimal.                                                          Stress, sleep loss, and toxins all suppress hormones: Chronic stress, poor sleep, ultra-processed food, and endocrine disruptors can all push hormones out of balance.                        Hormone health affects far more than energy: Hormones influence mood, motivation, weight, libido, brain health, cardiovascular risk, and disease prevention.                                                Bioidentical hormones are not the same as synthetic ones: Bioidentical hormones behave differently in the body and are a major reason some older HRT fears need rethinking.                  Men and women need a whole-system approach: Thyroid, testosterone, progesterone, estrogen, DHEA, and vitamin D all interact, so treatment should look at the full picture.                                  Symptoms matter more than a single lab number: The most effective treatment approach described is symptom-driven, not just based on whether a result falls inside a reference range. Time Stamps 05:26 Mike’s personal hormone health crash and why “normal labs” can miss real dysfunction  10:48 How stress, sleep, diet, and endocrine disruptors damage hormones                                18:15 Epigenetics, inheritance, and how hormones affect mood, motivation, and weight            24:37 Why HRT has been misunderstood and the difference between sick care vs proactive care      27:47 Bioidentical vs synthetic hormones and why that distinction matters                                  30:47 Women’s hormone health, PCOS, progesterone, estrogen, testosterone, and insulin resistance                                                                                                                                      38:39 Metabolic dysfunction, menopause, and the role of oral hormone replacement                  45:58 Estrogen, cardiovascular protection, men’s hormone decline, and falling sperm counts    52:28 Why symptoms matter more than lab ranges and how free vs bound testosterone works  59:46 Practical hormone replacement approach: testosterone, DHEA, thyroid, vitamin D            66:41 Growth hormone and why it matters for aging, bone, muscle, and cognition                      68:51 Peptides, longevity medicine, and the future of preventative care   Resources - www.optimizemd.health Instagram -@optimzemd.drmike Facebook - Optimizemd.Drmike   Support the Podcast If you found this conversation valuable, consider subscribing and leaving a review on your preferred podcast platform. Your feedback helps us continue to bring you insightful discussions on important health topics.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    1h 16m

  7. Jun 24

    New research indicates the optimal combination of strength and cardiovascular training for optimal longevity: Wisdom Wednesdays

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    9 min

  8. Jun 21

    The Discipline Myth With Carly Taylor

    We treat discipline and willpower like a magic potion we have to find before we're allowed to start and then we either spend our time reading and listening about the thing we're still not doing, or give up because we're sure we don't have it. But the people we call disciplined don't feel like it either; they've just learned to carry the discomfort and act on what matters anyway. This week, why the "willpower fuel tank" idea doesn't hold up, why some of us start with more of a head start than others, and why the skill underneath it all — psychological flexibility — is something you can train.   Carly is a counsellor and coach who specialises in building psychological hardiness — the ability to navigate challenge, stay engaged, and take meaningful action under pressure. Her work integrates modern psychology with Eastern and Stoic approaches, helping people build resilience, live with purpose, and respond to life’s challenges with greater clarity, courage and steadiness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    8 min
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4.7
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37 Ratings

About

Host Dr Paul Taylor, a Psychophysiologist, Neuroscientist, Exercise Scientist, and Nutritionist interviews experts from around the world on cutting edge research and practices related to improving hardiness in your mind, body and brain to become your best self.

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